If You Give a Kwami a Cracker
by PFTones3482
Summary: ...it might just end up with your best friend figuring out your secret identity. One shot.


**I really needed me some Nino stories, and sometimes the only way to get what you want is to write it yourself. I probably could have split this up into two parts, tbh, but I'm lazy.**

 **I don't own Miraculous Ladybug.**

* * *

GENERAL POV

* * *

It was not unusual anymore for the citizens of Paris to see Ladybug and Chat Noir fighting against some bizarre looking monster in the streets. While many people stopped and watched the fight, still more had gotten used to them and would barely spare a glance at the heroes.

Nino was one of them.

After having met both heroes a few times in person, the novelty of them had worn off and the boy had realized that underneath the masks, they were normal, everyday people who probably didn't enjoy being gawked at all the time.

Sure, Nino was curious about them; who wasn't? But after seeing what Adrien went through with his father and all of his fangirls, Nino had a new respect for the heroes that went beyond fangirling (fanboying?) and he tried very hard not to stand in the middle of their fights and stare at them.

Now, however, as he was walking home from school, Nino was forced to walk directly under a fight with a monster (akuma, as Alya had called it once) that was taking place on the rooftops of the city.

He ducked his head at the fight and clutched the straps of his backpack, quickening his pace to a slight trot and completely missing how Chat Noir got slammed backwards into the roof above him.

Nino just wanted to go home, get something to eat, finish his dumb homework, and then play video games until his mother forced him to go to bed. He knew that Alya had to be somewhere, filming the fight, but frankly he wanted to get as far away from the violence as possible.

As the sound of the battle faded behind him, Nino relaxed his pace, loosening his grip on his backpack straps and tugging his headphones onto his head so that he could listen to music for the rest of his walk.

If he hadn't put them on, he might have noticed the pained groans slipping out of the open pocket on his bag.

* * *

Adrien frantically scanned the roof, silver ring on his finger and hair dangling in his eyes as he searched desperately for Plagg.

Behind him, he could hear Ladybug activate her lucky charm, and he cursed his never ending bad luck. Of _course_ his ring would fall off, and of _course_ Plagg would go missing in the middle of a fight.

The scream of hatred from the akuma alerted him to the fact that Ladybug had gotten a hold of the possessed items, and he quickly moved up the tiles and pressed his back to a nearby chimney, still gazing out at the roof in the hopes that maybe he would see his Kwami.

A thump behind him, and then soft footsteps.

Adrien quickly flung a hand out from behind the chimney to show Ladybug that he wasn't transformed, and she stopped where she was. "Chat? Are you okay?"

He swallowed hard and brought his hand back to his chest, ducking his head and sinking to the roof. "Ladybug, I can't find him," he whispered, the first pangs of panic spreading in his chest.

"Who?" Ladybug questioned, her voice getting closer and then sinking to his level as she sat down on the other side of the chimney.

"Plagg," he choked out. "My…my Kwami. My ring fell off when I got thrown and I found it, but I can't find him."

Ladybug stayed silent for a moment and Adrien struggled to stay calm. Plagg was fine. He had to be.

"Well…he can't have gone far, right?" Ladybug reasoned. "You want me to recharge and then go look for him?"

Adrien swallowed and tugged at his hair, the chill of his ring practically burning into his skin. "I…that'd be great, Ladybug," he agreed. "He um…he really likes cheese."

Ladybug chuckled softly and her hand appeared from the side, curled into a fist. Adrien smiled thinly and bumped it halfheartedly with his own. "Thanks," he said sincerely.

"Of course," the heroine murmured. "Can you get off this roof by yourself?"

Adrien peered around him and spotted a fire escape not too far away, and he nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

"Don't worry, Chat," Ladybug soothed him. "I'll find Plagg. And I'll figure out a way to get him back to you."

She swooped away before her transformation wore off, and Adrien worked his way cautiously over to the fire escape, eyes locked to the rooftop in the hopes that he would find the tiny cat.

"I hope so."

* * *

"Afternoon, honey," Nino's mother greeted warmly as Nino stepped inside and pulled his headphones off. "How was school?"

Nino accepted the motherly kiss on the cheek and smiled, waving his hand in the air. "Eh. Could have been way worse. We still have pears?"

His mother chuckled and tilted her head at the kitchen. "On the table. Get your homework done before you start in on those video games, okay?"

Nino grinned cheekily at her, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses. "Me? Play video games instead of do boring homework?" he asked, aghast. "I would never."

She cuffed him gently over the head, pulling his cap off and batting him with it. "You did it last week, mister. Go. Homework."

Nino snatched the hat back from his mother and darted away, grabbing a pear from the fruit bowl in the kitchen, rummaging through the drawers in the pantry for a box of crackers, and then vaulting up the stairs to his room.

He set his food down on his desk and chucked his backpack across the room where it landed with a thump on his bed, spilling books onto the comforter.

Nino had just started to shut his door when a quiet groan came from his bag and he spun on one heel, nearly losing his balance and pitching to the floor. The door clicked shut behind him and the boy frowned, edging cautiously over to his bed and adjusting the brim of his hat.

"Hello?" he questioned, feeling rather stupid.

To his surprise, he got another groan in response, and Nino's first thought was that someone had thrown a tape recorder into his backpack as a joke. His second thought was "where would someone get a tape recorder in this decade?"

He shook his head and stepped up in front of his mattress, squinting down at the mess of books on his bed. He didn't see anything at first, but a quiet cough prompted him to begin sifting through his books, pencils, and various granola bar wrappers in search of the source of the noise.

He did not expect to uncover a tiny black cat.

"Woah!"

Nino jumped back a good two feet, pressing a hand to his pounding heart and staring in disbelief at the small animal lying face down on his bed. For a moment, he just stood there and gazed at the sight, unable to comprehend what was happening.

But then the little thing shivered and curled into a ball, and Nino realized with a start that it might be hurt.

He carefully got to his knees and edged back over to his bed, pulling away the books and school supplies that surrounded the cat and setting them on the floor.

As the animal came into sight, Nino sucked in a breath. It was barely the size of his hand, and it was bleeding badly from a rather deep looking cut on its back. The right arm (leg?) was twisted in a rather unnatural position, as was the cat's tail, and Nino cursed when he realized that he had probably hurt the poor thing when he had thrown his backpack.

"Hey," he murmured, gently cupping his hands underneath the cat and tugging him off the bed, cradling it to his chest. "You'll be okay…. whatever you are."

The cat's eyes blinked open wearily and Nino jumped a little at how green they were. The brows of the animal furrowed into a puzzled look.

"Nino?"

Okay, _that_ was freaky. Nino stumbled to a halt, gaping down at the cat and struggling to form a coherent sentence. Before he could, however, the cat-bug-alien thing passed out in his grasp, and Nino realized that no matter how creepy it was, it needed help.

He trotted down the stairs at a fast pace, poking his head into the living room and kitchen before finding his mother at the dining room table, glasses on the edge of her nose and fingers tapping at her laptop furiously.

"Mom? Is the animal hospital closed today?" he asked quietly.

His mother glanced up from her work and adjusted her spectacles, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, I was the last doctor to leave. Why, honey?"

Nino moved out from the doorway and spread his hands gently, revealing the unconscious cat thing settled in his palms. His mother's eyes widened and she jumped from her chair, darting over to her son and staring down at it in confusion. "What on earth-?"

"I don't know," Nino said helplessly. "He…she…it was in my backpack and…it's hurt Mom, and I don't know what it is, but we can't just…. _leave_ it."

His mother pursed her lips and nodded, shutting down her laptop and pulling her car keys from her pocket. "You're right," she agreed quickly. "Let's go."

Nino sighed in relief and followed his mother out the door, glancing down at the cat and smiling thinly.

"You'll be okay," he murmured softly. "I promise."

* * *

His mother worked fast the moment they got there, instructing Nino to lay the cat on a table while she got out everything she needed to fix it up.

Less than forty-five minutes after they had arrived at the animal hospital, the cat had been stitched up, bandaged, and given a tiny cast on its right arm. It was now curled up in a tiny cat bed the hospital always had extras of, and Nino was careful not to jolt the sleeping animal as they went back to the car, his mother locking the door of the clinic wearily.

"Honey…do you even know what this thing is?" his mother asked, sliding into the driver's seat. "Because it's not a normal cat. It's blood…there's DNA that just doesn't match."

"Mom, it's the size of an apple," Nino said with a roll of his eyes. "I knew it wasn't a normal cat. But it…there's something about it. I couldn't just let it die."

She smiled sweetly and cupped a gentle hand under Nino's chin for a moment before starting the car up. "Looks like I got something right with you," she murmured, brushing her hair from her eyes and pulling out into traffic.

Nino chuckled and glanced down at the cat again, frowning as he traced a thumb over the palm of his hand, where less than an hour ago there had been blood pooling against his skin.

Something about this cat was eerily familiar, and the fact that it had _spoken_ and the one word it had said was Nino's name? That kind of weirded him out, if he was being perfectly honest. He hadn't told his mother that the thing had spoken; no way she would have believed him.

But at the same time, Nino felt comfortable around this animal, whatever it was. Something about it set him at ease and kept him calm, despite the weirdness that had just gone down.

He looked up as his mother pulled back up to their house, and with a quick word of thanks to her he ran inside and up to his room, cradling the cat's bed gently in the crook of his arms. Nino knew better than to force the cat to wake up, so he settled it down on his bed and reluctantly pulled out his homework, grabbing the pear that he had abandoned on his desk and biting into it.

Every few minutes Nino would look up at the still sleeping cat in frustration, and would then force his eyes back to his homework. Eventually Nino lost himself in the monotony of physics, only to be pulled from his trance over an hour later at a small cough.

His pencil hit the floor and he scrambled off of his desk chair, darting to his bed and kneeling carefully at the side of it, head tilted as he watched the cat slowly open its eyes and look up at him in confusion.

"Hey," he murmured softly, keen gaze going over his mother's handiwork and making sure that the cat hadn't scratched anything out of place while asleep. "Doing okay?"

The animal just blinked at him for a moment, somewhat disoriented, and Nino held up his hands gently. "It's okay. I uh…I know you can talk? And my mom…she's a vet…she fixed you up. Your leg was broken and you needed some stitches in your back and we had to set your tail. But she thinks you'll be okay."

The cat swallowed and managed to give him a slow nod before pushing itself into a sitting position, moving his tiny, bandaged tail out of the way so that it didn't get crushed. Nino watched in quiet fascination, one hand ready to move and catch the cat if it fell.

"Thank you," the cat finally managed to get out, it's voice somewhat higher pitched than Nino had expected.

The teen nodded rapidly, pushing his glasses up his nose. "O-Of course! I uh…I'm Nino….but you…knew that?"

Was it just his imagination, or did the cat flinch? It recovered quickly from whatever it had been thinking and gave him a weak smile. "Plagg," he offered quietly.

Nino smiled and then glanced back over towards his desk, where the crackers he had been munching on were lying out. "Are you uh…are you hungry?" he asked, biting his lip.

Plagg looked up at him with wide eyes filled with delight. "Do you have cheese?" the cat asked hopefully.

Nino grimaced. "Sorry, bud. No cheese. I have crackers, and some fruit. Mom's lactose intolerant, so we don't really buy a lot of cheese."

Plagg frowned, making a small sound of disappointment in the back of his throat. "Worst illness ever," he grumbled, making Nino bite back a laugh. "Crackers are fine, then."

Nino nodded and got to his feet, moving across the room and grabbing the package before darting back over to the bed and kneeling again.

Plagg was obviously famished, as he swallowed a solid thirteen crackers before finally taking a breather and sitting back, wincing a little as he sat on his tail the wrong way. He glanced back at the wrapping and then at Nino, a curious eyebrow raised.

"Why did you help me?" he asked softly.

Startled, Nino picked up a cracker himself and nibbled on it. "Why wouldn't I?" he shot back.

Plagg snorted and ran a gentle paw over his right leg, a grateful smile curling across his face. "Well…you obviously don't know what I am. Or who I am. Most teenagers would just…leave me."

Nino wondered at the comment about who he was, but left it for the moment. "My mom always taught me that if an animal was hurt, no matter what it was, and you could save it, that you should," he explained, finishing off the cracker and staring thoughtfully at the ceiling. "Though I have to admit, I never really thought I'd come across a talking cat big enough to fit into the palm of my hand."

He looked back down at Plagg curiously, an eyebrow cocked, and the cat sighed. "I'm not getting out of this, am I?" he groaned.

Nino's smile faltered and he sat up straight. "Well…I'm not going to force you to tell me anything. You just…remind me a lot of someone."

Plagg chuckled and met Nino's gaze head on, bright green eyes unwaveringly staring into dark brown ones. "That's not a surprise," he admitted.

The cockiness with which he said the sentence triggered something in Nino's brain, and he tilted his head slowly. "Do you…have something to do with Chat Noir?" he asked carefully. It made sense; the eyes, the fact that he was a _cat_.

The grin that crossed Plagg's face was enough of an answer, and Nino leaned forwards on his knees eagerly, eyes sparkling behind his glasses.

"Tell me everything," he declared.

Plagg just chuckled and shook his tiny head, picking up another cracker and munching on it. "That's a lot," he admitted. "And there are some things I can't tell you. What do you want to know?"

Nino frowned, sitting back on his heels and glancing out the window. "Well…what are you, exactly? Obviously you're not a normal cat. My mom figured that one out pretty fast."

Plagg nodded and shifted his weight so that he was no longer leaning on his tail. "I'm called a Kwami."

Though the word had no meaning to Nino, he stored it away in his head for future reference and crossed his arms on his bed, leaning his cheek against them and studying Plagg. "And…what exactly do you have to do with Chat Noir? Are you like...a guide?"

Plagg snorted unceremoniously and bit into another cracker. "You could say that," he said somewhat cockily. "I mean...I kind of _am_ Chat Noir."

Nino's eyebrows shot up. What Alya wouldn't give to be in his position right now. "What do you mean?" he questioned, lifting a hand to adjust his glasses on his nose. "I mean…if you're allowed to tell me, that is."

Plagg nodded, looking rather surprised that Nino wasn't prying. "It's no big deal," he assured him. "Basically, I'm what makes Chat Noir able to become Chat Noir. Without me, his civilian self…can't transform."

The Kwami trailed off and frowned, turning his head around to look out the window. "What time is it?" he asked nervously.

Nino blinked and twisted his wrist to look at his watch, furrowing his eyebrows. "Almost seven, why?"

Plagg winced and pushed himself to his feet shakily, and Nino jolted upright, holding out a gentle hand behind the Kwami. "What are you-?!"

"I need to get back to him," Plagg insisted, his eyes starting to look fearful. He gave a tiny hop into the air and growled as he hit the cat bed again. " _Dang it._ I can't fly. That roof really screwed me up."

"Hold on," Nino protested, feeling overwhelmingly relieved that he hadn't been the one to hurt the Kwami (or at least, he wasn't the only reason). "You need to sit still and relax, or those stitches are going to come out. We can look for Chat tomorrow after school, okay?"

Plagg shook his head quickly, spreading his paws and grimacing. "I can't," he choked out, surprisingly emotional. "Without me, Chat can now be possessed by an akuma."

"Those weird butterfly things that take people over?" Nino asked in surprise.

Plagg's tiny arms dropped back to his sides and he stared up at Nino, his cat eyes slightly owlish. "Yeah…how did you-?"

"My friend Alya," Nino explained, settling down as he realized the Kwami wasn't planning on running off anytime soon. "She heard Ladybug say it a few times…what do you mean, he can be possessed?"

Plagg groaned and sank back down onto the cat bed. "As long as we're with their civilian forms," he explained softly, "Chat and Ladybug can't get possessed by an akuma. But the second we're away from them…"

Nino nodded, eyes filling with comprehension. "By 'we,' I take it you mean…Ladybug's Kwami? Well…don't you have to be like, really upset to get taken over?"

He frowned, rubbing a hand over his chin and continuing before Plagg could answer. "That's what happened when I was the Bubbler. I was pissed at Adrien's dad. Same thing when Alya got possessed; she was mad at Chloe for getting her unfairly suspended."

Plagg snorted unpleasantly. "Chloe is the reason for almost half the akuma possessions," he grumbled, before realizing what he had just said.

Nino stared at him for a moment, jaw working, and tilted his head. "You…know Chloe?"

Plagg quickly held up his good paw. "She's the mayor's daughter, of course we know who she is. Plus, Chat and Ladybug had to guard her once while there was an akuma after her."

Nino nodded and glanced back out the window, where the light was fading rather quickly. "Well…will Chat be okay? At least for tonight?"

Plagg's eyes clouded with worry and he ducked his head, rubbing his paw up and down his arm. "I…I hope so," he whispered. "If he's not, I wouldn't…"

A gentle finger brushed over the Kwami's head and he glanced up to find Nino studying him with concern. The boy pulled his hand back quickly and gave him a shaky smile. "I'm sure Chat will be okay. Tomorrow I can take you around the city after school, and if you see him…you don't even have to tell me, you can just…go."

Plagg stared at Nino, a tentative smile crossing his lips. "I can't believe you're not pestering me with more questions. Anyone else would have demanded to know who Chat was by now."

Nino laughed bitterly and drew his knees to his chin. "Sure," he said with a shrug. "I'm curious. Everyone is. But the thing is…my friend Adrien…he's a model, and he always has fangirls after him and has to put up with a lot of bull shit from his father…one slip up from me could mean the same thing for Chat Noir, and I don't want anyone to have to go through that."

When he looked back up, Plagg was watching him with something akin to awe, and Nino couldn't help but flush under the Kwami's gaze. "Nino," the cat mumbled. "You're a good kid."

He said it like he had already known it, and Nino smiled. "Thanks."

They sat in silence for a long moment in the darkening room, and when Nino looked up again it was with furrowed eyebrows. "Hey Plagg?"

The cat looked up wearily, the darkness already lulling his tired body to sleep. "Yeah?"

"Is…is Chat Noir a student at my school?"

The flinch that Plagg gave was an answer in and of itself, and Nino nodded thoughtfully, holding up a hand. "I'm not going to pry, I just…would it be easier for me to take you to school tomorrow to find him?"

Plagg nodded vigorously and Nino chuckled, stretching his legs out and pushing himself to his feet. "Okay then. I'll take you to school in the morning. You look kinda beat, though, so get some sleep. I'm gonna finish my homework," he said, wrinkling his nose in disgust.

Plagg snorted and curled up again in the cat bed, barely flinching when Nino picked it up and moved it over to his arm chair. "Thanks, Nino," the cat mumbled sleepily. "Chat…is lucky to have you as a friend."

He dozed off before he could process the sentence, leaving Nino to stare at the Kwami in utter amazement, his homework totally forgotten for the rest of the night.

* * *

Ladybug landed wearily on her rooftop at nearly two in the morning, releasing her transformation and catching an exhausted Tikki in her hands before descending the ladder into her room. "I can't _believe_ we didn't find him," the girl groaned.

Tikki nodded in agreement, rubbing at her eyes. "I know," she mumbled sleepily. "I hope Plagg's okay."

Marinette smiled gently and set Tikki down on her desk. "You care about him, huh?"

If Kwami's could blush, Tikki did, and she nodded shyly. "We've been together for thousands of years, Marinette. He's my best friend."

Marinette nodded and pressed a soft kiss to Tikki's forehead, moving around quietly to get changed. "Can you sense him? Like at all?"

Tikki sighed and shook her head. "No. If it worked that way, we would always know who the other's Miraculous holder was, and that could jeopardize things. The only thing I would be able to sense is if…"

The Kwami trailed off, eyes flashing with fear, and Marinette quickly knelt next to her. "Hey. If he was seriously hurt, or worse, you would know. So obviously he's okay. Just…indisposed somewhere. We'll find him."

"We better," Tikki said softly. "Without him, Chat Noir is vulnerable to Hawk Moth's akuma's."

Marinette cursed softly and bit her lip as she pulled a nightshirt over her head. "You think he's okay?" she wondered, feeling a concern for her partner that she hadn't before. What was his home life like? Did he have any health problems, mental or physical? What if he had depression or PTSD? She cursed herself for not getting to know her partner better and looked back at Tikki anxiously.

"He should be okay for a bit," Tikki admitted softly, a yawn breaking through her words. "But without Chat, you can't fight evil. And if you have to fight Chat himself…"

"It won't come to that," Marinette protested. "We'll find Plagg first."

"If you have to fight Chat," Tikki continued quietly, lowering her gaze, "neither of you will win. Plagg and I are polar opposites, but that's why you and Chat work so well together; you balance each other out. Neither of you can beat the other, even if akumatized. If you fought Chat Noir and he was going at full strength…"

Tikki cut herself off and shook her head, antennae bobbing on her head. "It would be really bad."

Marinette pursed her lips and climbed into bed, reaching up and shutting off her lamp. "Well," she muttered into the darkness, "we're just going to have to make sure that doesn't happen."

* * *

Nino was surprised to find that Plagg's tail was back to normal in the morning, completely healed overnight.

"So you heal faster than normal?" the boy clarified, gently unwrapping the bandages from the cat's tail and tossing them into the trash.

Plagg twitched it gently and grinned, eyes lighting up. "Yup. The stitches and arm are gonna take a little longer, though."

Nino nodded and turned back to his backpack, holding open the side pocket. "Come on, this'll keep you hidden from the other students. Can uh…can you fly yet?"

Plagg managed a pathetic little hop, a scowl overtaking his face as he moved only a few inches. "Barely," he grumbled, allowing Nino to scoop him up and deposit him into the pocket.

"You'll live," Nino decided, tugging the bag onto his shoulders and leaving his room.

His mother had already left for work, which Nino was relieved about. He didn't really want to have his mother question him about the cat in his backpack. He grabbed an apple on the way out and swung by the corner store as he ventured to school, buying a small amount of brie and discreetly sliding it into the side pocket.

A squeal of delight slipped out and Nino bit back a grin, eyes sparkling as the sound of munching reached his ears. Apparently Plagg _did_ like cheese.

He reached the school a tad earlier than usual and sank down onto the steps, situating his backpack in front of him so that he could keep an eye on the Kwami in it, who was happily gorging himself on the cheese.

Student's started milling about only a few minutes after he had sat down, and Nino had waved hello to everyone, including Alya and Marinette, by the time Adrien showed up, on foot rather than in his limo.

"Dude," Nino said softly, his eyes filling with concern as he took in his friends disheveled appearance and the bags under his eyes. "What's up, class starts in like three minutes? I almost went in without you."

Adrien winced and ran a hand through his hair, green eyes filled with concern. "I…I was up all night," he admitted. "I lost something really important, and I need to find it."

A gut feeling settled in Nino's stomach, one that made his head spin, and he wrapped a gentle arm around his friend's shoulders. "What was it? Maybe I could help look."

Adrien hesitated a moment too long, and the school bell rang, jolting both boys from their quiet stupor. "Maybe after class," the model mumbled, lowering his gaze to the ground. "I have to go to my locker and grab my books. See you in physics."

Nino watched Adrien slump off and waited until several dozen other kids had streamed past him before glancing back at Plagg, who had his head popped out of the side pocket, his eyes filled with concern.

When the Kwami caught Nino watching him, he gave a sheepish smile. "Figure it out yet?" he asked quietly.

Nino gave him a shaky smile before glancing back up at the steps, heart heavy with worry for his friend. "Yeah. Yeah, I did. Come on, Plagg."

* * *

Adrien sighed and thumped his head against his locker, struggling to stay calm. He knew that if he seemed vulnerable at all, Hawk Moth would send an akuma after him, but he was just too freaked out about Plagg to care that much.

"Adrien?"

The boy winced at the sound of Nino's voice and he shook his head. "I'm fine, Nino," he muttered. "Go to class."

"Dude, I know that's a lie. It's okay."

"No it's _not_ ," Adrien choked out, his voice breaking.

A hand settled lightly between his shoulder blades and Adrien relaxed a little bit at his friend's touch, letting his hands slide down to rest against the locker door. "I…-"

"I know. A lot more than you think, actually."

Adrien furrowed his eyebrows and frowned, lifting his head and turning around. "Wha-?"

His voice cut off at the sight of Nino standing there, a bruised and bandaged but otherwise completely fine Plagg settled on his shoulder. Adrien stumbled back, slamming into the lockers and pressing his hands to his mouth to stifle the startled cry that spilled out.

"Plagg?" he practically whimpered.

Nino's face softened into a smile and he held a hand up, letting Plagg clamber into it and then holding him out to his friend. "He can't exactly fly right now," Nino said with a shrug. "The fall off the roof didn't really agree with him."

Adrien swallowed and slipped Plagg from Nino's hands to his, pressing the Kwami gently to his forehead and trembling. "You're okay," he murmured.

Plagg lifted his good arm and settled it gently on Adrien's temple, glancing back at Nino gratefully. "Thanks to Nino, yeah."

Adrien drew in a sharp breath and lifted his gaze back to Nino's, who was rubbing his neck sheepishly. "You…?"

He spread his hands and grinned. "Guilty as charged. Don't freak out, man. I'm…not gonna tell anyone. You have it rough enough just as you."

Adrien darted forward and enveloped Nino in a tight hug, burying his head into the crook of his friend's neck and smiling. "Thank you so much, man. I'm…actually really glad you figured it out."

Nino rubbed Adrien's back gently, a sparkle in his eyes. "I am too," he admitted. "This is kinda really cool."

Adrien pulled back and settled Plagg gently into his jacket pocket. "I can't believe you took care of him," he said with a shake of his head. "Or that he wound up with _you_ of all people."

"He gave me cheese!" Plagg piped up from inside his jacket.

The two friends burst into laughter and, arms wrapped around one another, strutted off to class.

* * *

 **Nino gives me life, okay? And I really wish there were more stories with him as one of the main characters.**


End file.
